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ANN ARBOR, MI - JANUARY 01: Goalie Jonathan Bernier #45 and Carl Gunnarsson #36 of the Toronto Maple Leafs try to keep the puck from Daniel Alfredsson #11 of the Detroit Red Wings during the 2014 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium on January 1, 2014 in Ann Arbor, Michigan.Toronto won the game 3-2 in a shootout. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)Photo: (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

ANN ARBOR, MICH. — Mike Babcock wore a fedora, Randy Carlyle had on a baseball cap and most players wore balaclavas under their helmets. Paul Ranger had so much eye-black on his face that he looked like was a member of the Navy SEALS or was auditioning for a role on Duck Dynasty. And Jonathan Bernier defied the fashion critics by stretching a toque over his goalie mask.

Yes, there was no escaping the weather at the Winter Classic, which looked like it was being played inside a snow globe with an announced 105,491 fans in attendance inside sold-out Michigan Stadium. But there was also no escaping what was really at stake.

The Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings headed into the game tied with the same number of points and barely holding down playoff spots. The Leafs had won their last two games, but had managed just two regulation wins in December. The Red Wings were also scuffling, with just three regulation wins last month.

Both needed the win. And while both teams picked up points, Toronto got one more in a 3-2 shootout win with Joffrey Lupul and Tyler Bozak both scoring. The Leafs vaulted ahead of the Red Wings into sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings.

ANN ARBOR, MI – JANUARY 1: Jimmy Howard #35 of the Detroit Red Wings makes a spinning arm save as teammates Daniel Cleary #71 and Kyle Quincey #27 defend against David Clarkson #71 and Nazem Kadri #43 of the Toronto Maple Leafs during the Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on January 1, 2014 at the University of Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Dave Reginek/NHLI via Getty Images)

“It’s a tight conference for us now,” said Bozak, who scored the shootout winner and another in regulation. “We haven’t been playing our greatest lately, so it was a huge two points for our team. That was the main thing. We had to take it as a regular game. Obviously, there were some distractions but we needed these two points bad, and we’re happy we got them.”

The Leafs win was anything but pretty. The event, which Red Wings head coach Babcock called a “home run for hockey,” was beautiful, but at times the cold and the accumulating snow conspired to make the game ugly.

Detroit outshot Toronto 13-5 in the first period. But with the amount of snow that collected on the ice, players did not shoot the puck as much as shovel it toward the net. Still, the goalies had to be sharp. Bernier stopped Daniel Cleary on a point-blank shot from the slot, while Detroit’s Jimmy Howard got his toe on an attempt from Nazem Kadri.

“Right now, Johnny’s on a little bit of a run,” Carlyle said of Bernier, who made his fourth straight start after replacing James Reimer in a 5-4 shootout loss against the Red Wings on Dec. 21. “And as long as he can provide us with the level of goaltending that he has, it would be foolish for us to look in another direction.”

ANN ARBOR, MI – JANUARY 01: Daniel Alfredsson #11 of the Detroit Red Wings took a pass from Henrik Zetterberg #40 and scored to give the Red Wings a 1-0 lead over goalie Jonathan Bernier #45 and the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 2014 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium on January 1, 2014 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

After a scoreless first period, the Red Wings took a 1-0 lead when a pass from Henrik Zetterberg redirected in off Daniel Alfredsson’s skate. Cody Franson was caught pinching on the play, leaving Jake Gardiner to defend a two-on-one.

The Leafs, who fired 13 shots on the Red Wings net in the second period, had ample chances to tie the game. With Toronto on the power play, James van Riemsdyk was robbed on a back-door pass as Howard again kicked out his pad.

But with 37 seconds remaining, van Riemsdyk grabbed a rebound off Phil Kessel’s blocked shot and batted the puck out of the air for his 15th of the season.

Toronto then took a 2-1 lead when Dion Phaneuf, fresh off signing a seven-year contract extension worth US$49 million on Tuesday, had his wrist shot redirect off Bozak’s stick. Detroit’s Justin Abdelkader tied the game with 5:25 remaining in the third period, setting up overtime and the shootout.

“What an experience it was. To play in that was very special,” Phaneuf said. “It definitely doesn’t get any better than that. With the shootout and the snow falling all day, you couldn’t have written a better script.”

Kessel, van Riemsdyk and Howard provided a post-script when they were named to the U.S. Olympic team after the game.